1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable outdoor cooking kit, apparatus and method, for cooking food thereon over an intense heat source. More particularly, the present invention relates to a portable outdoor cooking kit, apparatus and method configured to cook scorchable food, such as pizza, over an intense heat source, such as a campfire or barbecue grill, while moderating heat applied to the food from the heat source.
2. Description of the Background Art
Barbeque grills are popular for cooking foods because of the ease of using this cooking method, because of the party atmosphere associated with outdoor cooking, and because of the unique flavor of food cooked by this method. In addition, outdoor cooking is an enjoyable endeavor due to the pleasant surroundings, and is preferable in the hot summer months so as to minimize unnecessary additional heating of the interior of the home while preparing food.
However, some foods, such as pizza, fish, and some vegetables, are not easily cooked on a barbeque grill. Pizza, in particular, is a popular food that, is not generally suited for cooking outdoors on a grill rack or open flame. Pizza also requires a uniformly high-temperature environment and even heat distribution, in order to cook properly. This uniformly heated environment is not provided by the concentrated heat source found within a campfire or barbeque grill.
Thus, there are certain foods which are not generally suited for placement directly above an intense heat source, and which require a uniform, moderate-temperature cooking environment, if they are to be cooked over an intense heat source without scorching.
Cooking pans referred to as “double boilers” have long been used on the stove top, with water in the lower container, to provide gentle heating for sauces and the like.
The background art contains a broad variety of portable cooking utensils and devices intended for use with a barbeque grill, and which attempt to accommodate the requirements of flat foods, like pizza. A limited number of these known devices are specifically designed for cooking pizza on a barbeque grill or the like.
One such patent is U.S. Pat. No. 6,640,695 issued to Stark, which discloses a tile supported over a grill using a rack. While the apparatus of Stark spaces the main cooking tile up and away from the grill rack on which the apparatus is supported, the device of Stark does not include a heat shield which is situated below and spaced away from the main cooking plane.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,187,359 issued to Zuccarini, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,741 issued to Plumley et al., respectively, each disclose a perforated pan which is constructed to rest directly on the grill grate. These devices have no means to substantially prevent scorching of the underside of the food associated with the grills' localized, intense heat source.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,365,833 issued to Chen, discloses a pizza baking pan that includes a modified wok with a central hole formed therein, and a ceramic plate supported above the modified wok.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,276 issued to Carey discloses a cover for cooking pizza on a flat grill plate or griddle, as found in a fast food restaurant, and does not address the issue of cooking upon a grill rack, grate, or open flame.
Other patents relating generally to double-walled cooking pans or dishes include U.S. Pat. No. 1,698,914 to Kircher, U.S. Pat. No. 3,799,048 to Finley, U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,520 to Hasegawa, U.S. Pat. No. 6,457,601 to Chappell, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,546,850 to Akiyama-Warren.
While the known devices are useful for their intended purposes, a need still exists for an improved kit, method and apparatus that would enable a user to cook foods on a barbeque grill or other intense heat source, while moderating the relatively intense heat thereof. In particular, a cooking kit is needed for use with an intense heat source, in which the kit includes a heat shield for placement below and spaced away from the main cooking panel, for ‘buffering’ or moderating the intense heat of the heat source.